Chancellor Rachel Reeves has announced that £1.1bn pounds will be gained from new taxation on the gambling industry, with some levies being increased by almost double.
As part of the new initiative, bookmakers will have to pay significantly more tax in areas such as online betting games, with an increase to 40% in remote gaming duty (otherwise known as online betting games) compared to the previous 21%.
Online gaming in particularly was reported as generating £5bn in gross gambling yield according to a recent report from the gambling commission on Tuesday, with remote gaming in general generating £7.8bn.
In response to the tax changes, Evoke, who own betting companies such as William Hill (a company which has a significant presence in Sheffield), commented: “The Board believes that industry tax changes will result in thousands of industry-wide job losses and increase customer activity on the unregulated black-market, ultimately reducing the overall monetary amount of tax the gambling industry pays in the UK.”
However, the change was also welcomed by some, such as the Chair of the Treasury Select Committee, Dame Meg Hillier, who stated in a government press release: “The Chancellor has made the right decision in agreeing with my Committee that the tax rate for remote betting, including highly addictive casino games, should reflect the harm it inflicts.
“Some parts of the gambling industry, such as racecourses and bingo halls, make a cultural contribution to our country. This is not the case, though, for online slots and other remote gaming which can quickly drain the bank balances of vulnerable people after just a few clicks of a button on a phone.
The mention of gambling addiction is of particular interest, especially after recent statistics from the gambling commission revealed that young people were particularly vulnerable to online betting games and other gambling. The commission reports that 22% of young people surveyed were at serious risk of a gambling problem, with a further 1.2% being classified as having a gambling problem.
It remains to be seen whether this tax change will have a positive or negative impact on the local betting community, and with the possibility of larger companies closing some of their stores due to cost. It is possible that the betting landscape in Sheffield may change, particularly with William Hill’s prevalence in the area.
